La Cueva de los Verdes is a seven kilometre long volcanic cave on the island of Lanzarote. One kilometre of it is open to the public and it’s amazing to visit. It was formed almost 5,000 years ago by lava that flowed from a volcano to the sea and it’s incredible to think of the forces and temperatures that formed the tunnel. This was my second visit to the cave. The first was with my wife, but this time my son went with me. He loved that he never had to duck down when walking through low passages! I looked forwards to taking this photo the whole day.

What’s really annoying however is tourists who don’t know how to use their cameras. A teenage girl with a DSLR stood next to me taking photos using the flash on her camera. I bet none of her photos captured the beautiful light show as the cavern was quite large and it was very dark. This photo was a 13 second exposure, at f/4.0, ISO 100. Luckily there was a particularly flat rock where I could rest my camera. Unfortunately for her she wasn’t speaking English but as I left I told another photographer to put his camera down in the same place and turn off the flash to get the best shot.

You can find more information on the cave here, here and of course on Wikipedia.

The Cueva de los Verdes stretches underground from the volcano known as “La Corona” through to the sea on the north east coast. The tunnel was blasted through the earth under the effect of exploding lava more than four millenia ago, rather like an enormous exhaust pipe.
Within recent years, the island government and the local authority of Haria have carried out extensive work on the cave, providing illumination, ambient music and safe pathways for the interested visitor. An hour–long guided tour covering more than two kilometres of underground exploration, includes an explanation of the legends of the cave, plus a sound and light show.

If you ever visit Lanzarote it’s definitely worth visiting!

PS. if you know the story behind this scene, keep it to yourself. Don’t spoil it for future visitors who might come by this post! 🙂